when in rome - daily diary

A farewell to Roma

2006-03-21T14:45:00.000-08:00

Well, look at that. Too soon, it seems, we're at the end of our journeys in Rome.

I was told that I had the hardest job. The last post on daily diary, I am supposed to sum up our trip. However, I feel it would be an injustice to each and every person on this trip, as well as an insult to every private sweet memory for one person to try to sum it up on a blog for the world to read.

Above the art, the things we've seen, the places we've discovered and the new friendships we've made, above everything, there is one single thing that makes this trip so amazing and so special to the 10 students (and yes, even to the one professor) that I cannot describe for the rest of you. Maybe some of us ourselves don't realize what we have gained yet...some of us are just glad to be going home, and probably won't think of Rome until the excitement of seeing their friends and family once again, eating at their favorite places that had been deserted by them for almost 3 months. But what we all went through was so incredibly internal and amazing, that to try to describe it to the outside world would be an almost laughable spectacle.

Our memories. Our growth. Our bonds with each other. Our bonds with Rome. The intricacies of day to day life over there. We all made ourselves a completely different life over there - a completely different self. I can't speak for everyone else when I say what an impact that self has made. I learned more about myself and life than I had ever previously experienced. I saw growth in my fellow classmates that I haven't seen take place in my closest friends over the course of years. Whether we like it or not, the 10 of grew close. And even though we liked some more than others, we all shared something over the course of these last 2 and a half months that will stay with us, very likely for the rest of our lives.

Am I being too sentimental? Probably. And I know the point of this daily diary is to, obviously, document what we do everyday. But short of a profound internet novel, I don't think I could ever do that here. I know the ardent followers of our journeys probably know and remember what we did even more than some of us can recall - the names of churches, the piazzas, the art - it all flows together for us in a haze of thought, memories and emotion. I guess what I'm trying to get at, for those of you who want a summation of our trip, on this, the last day in Rome, is this:

We all learned more about life and grew as people here more than we ever could've in a classroom. Educators, parents, and people who have any interest in young people, you should all be proud of the 10 honors kids who lived life for two and a half months in a foreign country, on a foreign continent with foreign customs and who come back to you not only safe (which when I think back to certain times, is an amazing accomplishment) but a new notion of how the world works outside our country and some actual real-life knowledge.

(oh yeah, and we come back with new expectations for coffee. Sorry, I don’t think Starbucks is gonna cut it anymore...)

Shayla

Building Altars to Rome

2006-03-08T02:00:00.000-08:00

Throughout Rome, on street corners and in alleyways and under bridges, you can find small altars built to honor different saints. In this tradition, each apartment in the Rome Center was assigned the task of creating their own altar with "relics" collected from around the city during our stay in Rome. We were basically given free reign to make whatever type of altar we wanted, so after working all day yesterday assembling our altars, each apartment got to present their altar to the class.

The boys in Apartment 3 built a shrine to Totti, everyone's favorite AS Roma soccer player. They built the altar as a triumphal arch to commemorate his return to stardom following his leg injury this season.

The girls in Apartment 2 built a church dedicated to San Tempus Temporis, or the Saint of Time. Their church had 4 altars, each dedicated to a different artistic period, as well as a shrine to Mandie's obnoxious alarm clock.

The girls in Apartment 312 built a cemetery throughout their apartment in the style of the Protestant Cemetery in Rome, complete with a tribute to Nutella, a cloister on the balcony, and two pyramids built out of Fanta bottles and cereal boxes.

Complete descriptions of these altars and the histories behind them can be found on the altar link on this blog:
http://honorsinromewinter06altarprojects.blogspot.com/

Well, we're off to finish packing up all the stuff we've bought over the last three months! Anyone have an extra suitcase?...

- Nicole

2nd to last day of class

2006-03-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

The day began without any scheduled events but this did not mean we weren't busy. Many of focused on one of the many creative writing assignments and on preparing our altars. The altars are projects that each of our room will present tomorrow (Wednesday) to our classmates and Lisa. We must dedicate the altar to something or someone and use artifacts we have found in Rome. Without revealing our altar (we'll save that for tomorrow!) Danny and I used a cardboard box to form the frame of our altar. To acquire this box the two of us went to Punto! grocery store. A nearby employee eagerly welcomed us to the soon-to-be recycled boxes by declaring "Prego!!" when he noticed our interest in the box so we grabbed the biggest one we could find. We then picked up a few items at the Cartoleria (office supply store). I don't know what the other rooms have been up to but they keep whispering and closing their doors when I'm around (no this isn't normal). I can't wait to see what everyone has in store for tomorrow.

In the afternoon we met with Sheila to listen to her comments on our writing assignments. We always enjoy when Sheila reads a few of her favorite pieces because our group's good sense of humor always shines through in our writing. After a couple of good laughs we moved on and read an piece by a writer who makes a living simply shadowing an individual for several months and captures the essence of their life. Sheila hoped to inspire the aspiring writers in the group and I certainly believe she succeeded.

In the evening most of us returned to our creative writing assignments. Some of us demonstrated our acute focus on our work while others showed that multi-tasking is another option. P.S. Thank you all for reading these entries, you certainly inspired quality entries from all of us. Please leave a comment or two if you haven't already! ---Schuyler Dunphy

How Honors students spend their days off...

2006-03-06T02:23:00.000-08:00

Since we have so many papers to finish up, altar projects to create, and suitcases to cram, Lisa gave us the day to work on all these half-finished assignments. Since today was my day for daily diary, I went around Palazzo Pio to capture everyone in action shots.

So how do Honors students spend their days?

Well, some of us get things done around the apartment. Ema here is hanging up her laundry, while Shayla and Kristin attempt to make packing fun.

Others, like Julia and Danny, type away furiously at their computers. I get the impression that Julia is preparing for a typing marathon in this photo...

The rest of us spent the afternoon working on our papers and projects too, though with slightly less gusto than Julia and Danny exhibited. Christina, Whitney, Schuyler, and I appear cheerful while typing away at our laptops, regardless of any ill feelings we may be secretly harboring towards our slacking creative juices.

Mandie, on the other hand, makes no effort to hide her distate for haikus about Bernini. In fact, if I were Bernini, I would start running in the other direction. Quickly. Especially if you saw the other picture of Mandie that I didn't post, which shows her trying to eat my camera.

Poor hardworking Honors students :) Except that we are in Rome, and even studying isn't that bad when you get to do it in such a fabulous place!

The last great action shot I took today was of Lisa and her favorite dog in the whole wide world, Sadie :) Too bad Sadie hates ALL of us and barks her head off anytime any of us walk into the room...

Well, those are all the action shots I have for today, folks. Only a few more days left, so I'm off to make the best of them! Ciao ragazzi :)

-Nicole

Orvieto!

2006-03-03T20:40:00.000-08:00

Today we got to spend the day in the tiny town of Orvieto, just north of Rome. We got up early to catch our train out, but of course it was delayed. Still, we made good time, and the fact that we got to take a trolley up the hill from the Orvieto train station was pretty awesome and made up for our slightly rocky start.

The first thing one notices upon arriving in Orvieto is the huge church, or Duomo directly across from the bus stop. The church is noticeable not just for its great size or its impressive façade of marble and mosaic, but also its striped-ness. Both the interior and exterior are covered in horizontal stripes, giving stark contrast to its soaring verticality. Inside the church we saw some extremely frightening frescos depicting the Last Judgment. The one of the Inferno was probably the scariest, and we were especially fascinated by the Technicolor demons who were shown torturing souls there.

Lisa showed us around a bit, and then set us loose to cause mayhem and destruction around town. Many of us went to a coffee shop to stock up on caffeine for the day and splurge on some of the brightly wrapped chocolates they sold there. Mmmm. They are for friends and family, we swear…

A group of us found a really good view of the countryside and had a good time looking at that, then we hit the streets to find some good souvenirs and a place to have lunch. You can’t ask for better than Umbrian food. I had gnocchi. It was awesome.

Orvieto is known to have really beautiful pottery, so many of us got gifts for

people back home in the pottery shops. There are also many other types of artisans with shops lining the streets there, so it was a good time. When it was time to go home we got to take the trolley again, then mess around at the train station for a while.

Yeah, we are insane. Anyhow, it was an awesome day. Yay Orvieto. I’ll bet you are all hoping you are one of those lucky people who is going to get some of that chocolate, huh?
-Julia

Not for the faint of heart...

2006-03-02T07:20:00.000-08:00

Raise your hand if you think walking up 122 steps sounds like a good time!! Yeah, so I'm assuming that nobody is raising a hand, because it was not fun nor easy! Today we visited the church right next to the Vittorio Emmanuele Monument, which is atop 122 big steps. My thighs were not very happy with me once I reached the top and we all took a moment to catch our breaths and check out the beautiful views. The church houses a golden icon of the baby Jesus to whom people continue to write letters, leaving them on the altar in front of his box. See how he glows!? I think most of us found it a little odd--not the idea of it, but just how he looks, glowing gold and covered in jewelry with an eerie and solemn face of an adult.

We walked through the Monument and stopped outside the cafe for a view of the Colosseum, Trajan's market, and Via Imperiale for Danny's presentation on the art and philosophies of Benito Mussolini. Mussolini barreled through the Forum of Augustus to build the large and always busy Via Imperiale that leads directly from the Colosseum to the Vittorio Emmanuele Monument, making a clear connection between the greatness of ancient Rome to Mussolini's politics and leadership. Can you imagine what the ruins had looked like before he destroyed part of them? It's hard to picture!

On our way to the church of the Capuchin Monks located on the infamous and expensive Via Veneto (thanks to Fellini), we had to stop once again at San Crispino for the best gelato in the world. I tried pear and if I didn't know better, I would think that I was eating an actual pear! It was amazing! Two and a half months just isn't enough time to try and enjoy all the flavors of gelato! None of us were exactly sure what to expect from the Capuchin Cemetery, but Lisa gave us fair warning that it would be creepy and gross. Yes, yes it was. The corridor and little rooms were decorated in lovely patterns and designs of flora, stars, etc., but with human bones--the bones of former monks! Some of the corpses didn't appear to be completely decomposed, but it didn't smell bad or anything in the cemetery--although it was pretty cold...I wondered what it would be like to be a Capuchin monk, incorporating death into everyday life in this manner. In some ways, it is nice--there clearly is beauty in death, for look what they can do with your old bones! -Whitney

Wednesday 1 March 2006: More Borromini and the Modern Art Museum

2006-03-01T13:34:00.000-08:00

The morning was spent visiting many of Borromini’s works: St. Ivo’s Church, Chiesa Nuova, San Giovanni of the Florentines. Borromini was underappreciated during his life and only after his tragic death did scholars begin to realize his artistic genius. He was a troubled soul who was difficult to work with. Borromini was in competition and at the same time collaboration with Bernini. Bernini was a sociable artist, who was loved by his patrons. Their rivalry ended with Borromini’s suicide.

St. Ivo’s
St. Ivo’s is a church that was completely designed by Borromini. Scholars have studied the structure because of its unusual shape. St. Ivo’s is the seat of the head of education until 1935. The theme of the church is wisdom and the decoration of the church holds true to this theme. Some scholars say that the floor plan is meant to look like a bee in flight or a hexagon, which is the symbol of a honeycomb and therefore connected to the bee imagery. The bee symbolizes wisdom and intelligence.

The most stunning part of this church is the lantern that spirals up to heaven. Scholars have tried to figure out the symbolism behind the spiraling lantern. The few discussed today were: conch shell, allegory of philosophy, imagery from the Old Testament (pillar of fire), and the most believable the papal tiara.

Chiesa Nuova

Borromini designed the oratory that is attached to this church. In order to not take anything away from the splendor of the church Borromini was not allowed to use marble columns in his design. In order to get around this he built columns out of brick. Borromini has taken a lot of his designs from Michelangelo, which can be seen in the windows of this façade.

What Borromini does, however, is change the original slightly in order to add a sweeping, swirling movement (characteristic of the Baroque). We went inside the oratory, which also has an incredible library, but it was closed so we wandered around inside for a while staring through windows and standing in courtyards.

San Giovanni of the Florentines (The Florentine Church)
Borromini is buried inside of this church.

He also designed the dome and cross-section of the Church. Borromini was a troubled soul and died a very sad death. One day Bernini was talking with Louis XIV and mentioned that he thought Borromini’s work was gothic. This was a terrible thing to say because it meant Borromini’s work was old fashioned and didn’t fit the times. The word of this affront spread like wildfire and poor Borromini upon hearing it stopped going out and fell into a great depression. One evening he chooses to rewrite his will. While he is writing his servant tells him he must go to sleep and turns out the light. In the middle of the night Borromini wakes up and wanted the light turned on. His servant refused and in a fit of rage and frustration he decided to inflict some type of bodily harm on himself. He saw a sword at the head of his bed, laid it on the bed and fell on it. He did not die immediately. Instead he writhed in pain for 14 hours until he bled to death. During this time he wrote out the account of his death so everyone would know about his sad demise.

On this happy note we all split for lunch.

Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna
This afternoon we caught the 116 mini-bus up to the Villa Borghese so we could take a short stroll over to the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna (the modern art museum).

The museum was incredible. Lisa talked to us for a little while about modern style of Italian painting called Futurism. Futurism was a movement that began in the early 1900’s. It asked for artists to throw away past art and turn to a modern approach that had no connection to antiquity.

The museum was full of all different sorts of modern art and also a few interactive exhibits. An Italian artist in the 1960’s created interactive exhibit where you walk inside of a dark box and all of the sudden lights turn on and manipulate your experience. It was very interesting to look at art that was not ancient and stare at the bold colors and strange designs.

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Ciao,
Ema

Jesuit Churches

2006-02-28T10:48:00.000-08:00

Tuesday February 28th
Oh reflexive verbs, today started off with Italian class. We spent most of our time learning how to use reflexive verbs such as mi sveglio (to wake up) to describe what we did in an average day. For example, La matttina mi sveglio alle otto, meaning in the morning I wake up at 8 o’clock. Overall it was a lot to learn but a brain expanding experience.

After a small break we reconvened in the afternoon and started our pilgrimage to the Jesuit churches, the first being Il Gesu. Il Gesu was the first church to be named after Jesus and the first permanent Roman Jesuit church. Built by the expense of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, nephew of Pope Paul III, the two main architects were Vigonla and Giacomo Della Porta.

Before entering Kristin concluded the second half of her small presentation on Baroque architecture, and Lisa gave us a run down of the history of the Jesuit Order. Kristin described what characteristics can be seen on the façade and interior. We were especially lucky to see the façade because in the beginning of the program it was under scaffolding for cleaning. Lisa history of the Jesuits included the following, in response to the Counter Reformation, St. Ignatius Loyola and St. Francis started the Society of Jesus or commonly called the Jesuits. St. Ignatius Loyola and St. Francis are the only two saints that are depicted in Jesuit churches. The order started universities, created missionaries in the four corners of the world, and promoted Catholics symbols such as saints, scenes from the life of the Virgin Mary, and the Eucharist. The Jesuit universities were usually limited to the wealthy, which served as a benefactor for the Jesuit church.

When we first walked in we were greeted by an eyeful of lavishness. Originally the interior the church was white, but over time that changed dramatically. In the long nave, designed for the acoustics of the preacher, side chapels were embleshised with colored marbles, and gold. Incorporated into every piece, the gold sprinkled and shined throughout the church.

This richness was surpassed by the ceiling fresco, Triumphant of the Name of Jesus. Designed by Giovanni Battista Guili or commonly known as Baccico, it captivated us and illustrated the grandeurs of the Baroque. We discussed the Baroque qualities of the piece namely among them, three dimensional figures, the limitless frame broken by stucco clouds, and the break through of the ceiling into the heavens. With heads titled back it was a lot to take in but amazing to see. I did get a photo but overall the ceiling was hard to photograph.

Here we also got to see the chapel of St. Ignatius, and the relic arm of St. Xavier.
As a class we decided that St. Ignatius would be turning in his grave if he could see all the gold that was incorporated in his tomb. Being a humble person and loyal to three Jesuit monastic vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience St. Ignatius would be greatly upset to see the opulence of the gold.

The next and last stop of the day was St. Iganzio. Built in 1626 it was dedicated to St. Ignatius. When we first walked in we were not thwarted by Andrea Pozzo’s optical illusion ceiling, Glorification of the Jesuit Apostolate and the dome. The best places to view the ceiling and the dome were designated by golden discs found on the floor. Both looked like they were made on a craved ceiling, but moving closer to the altar, the compositions were clearly made on a flat ceiling.

To wrap of up the day we had gelato. Even though it was a little cold outside, the gelato hit the spot. This is going to be one of those things that I miss, only nine more days!!

-Christina

More Reasons to Love Bernini

2006-02-27T10:40:00.000-08:00

Like we needed any more reasons to love Bernini.

This morning, we visited two churches to see the differences between two of our favorite artist's chapels. First stop: Santa Maria della Vitorria, where we saw the breathtaking sculpture of St. Teresa in Ecstasy. In this exquisite chapel, St. Teresa is portrayed at the moment when, as in one of her visions, an angel is piercing her with a golden arrow, filling her with the agony and ecstasy of the Holy Spirit. Bernini's rendition of St. Teresa has inspired a lot of conversation over the years because he chooses to portray her so differently than previous artists. In Bernini's sculpture, St. Teresa is reclining and relaxed, drawn forward by the force of the arrow, but not actively participating in the event at all. She is simply the recipient of the gift of God's love. The angel in the composition is smiling yet sympathetic, with a gentle hand holding the golden spear, which is a break from the traditional representation of the angel as a hovering, forceful spirit. These small details have a big impact on the scene by shifting the focus from the actions of St. Teresa to the power of the Holy Spirit.

As far as the rest of the chapel is concerned, it is a striking example of bel composto, or the sense that all the unique components of the chapel work and flow together to create one beautiful, coherent composition. The marble in this chapel is rich in color, and Bernini's attention to color and light create great depth in a space that is really not very large. The whole chapel comes to life when the alcove housing the statue comes to life with the light from the window above, illuminating the scene as if the light were coming straight from heaven.

We witnessed our second example of bel composto in the chapel at San Francesco a Ripa in Trastevere, dedicated to Blessed Ludavica Albertoni. This chapel was strikingly different from the chapel in Santa Maria della Vittoria because of its simplicity, both in design and decoration. While the chapel for St. Teresa was rich with color, marble, gold, and detail, the chapel for Ludavica was markedly plain with its white walls, minimal detail, and polished, simple portrait of Ludavica herself. However, despite the simplicity of the chapel, this area too exhibited great coherency between its individual segments. The focus of this chapel was not as much to impress the viewer, but to incite reflection upon Ludavica's great works and to illustrate the moment of her death when the Holy Spirit leaves her on its way up to heaven. The other major difference was the painting behind the statue of Ludavica of the Virgin Mary and Child, contributing to the holiness of the scene and giving the composition its main source of color.

The differences between these two chapels arise mostly from the different requirements of the patrons who commissioned them to be done. Even in their difference, however, it is apparent that Bernini was a master of bel composto, even under the most limited of budgets or the strictest specifications. As we wrap up our study of Bernini and Baroque art and architecture, we will certainly look back at these statues as spectacular examples of master sculpture.

After visiting the churches, most of us spent the afternoon working on finishing up assignments and wishing that we weren't already in the last two weeks of the program!

A presto!

Ciao,
Nicole

Friday February 24th: Bernini vs. Borromini

2006-02-24T10:16:00.000-08:00

Today we visited the S. Andrea al Quirnale and S. Carlo alla Quattro Fontane churches. We discussed and did a group exercise on Baroque Architecture: Bernini vs. Borromini. We broke into groups and looked at one of the two churches analyzing: architecture, symbols/iconography, and experience. Then we discussed our findings with the groups and compared and contrasted the two churches.

S. Andrea al Quirnale
This is a Jesuit church designed and completed by Bernini over the fourteen year period from 1658-1672. This church is decicated the Saint Andrew. July 1658 Pope Alexander VII told the Jesuit cardinal that he would grant permission to build a new Jesuit church and that Bernini would be the architect. Bernini drew up two plans (pentagon and an oval plan), the oval plan was agreed upon.

This church is a jewel box. It is ornately decorated and seems to glimmer and sparkle when you walk in. The interior is a medley of marbles, the most prominent is a rose colored, mottled marble used for the walls of the church. A pattern of mosaics and opus sectili mosaics path the walkway to the main alter. The alter is a stunning work of guilded stucco.

The alterpiece is of St. Andrew on the X shaped cross, flanking the picture are angels and cherubs. Above the alterpiece is a statue of St. Andrew sitting on a cloud rising to Heaven.

The church is small and calming. Although there is a lot of business the colors are soothing and everything is very well tied together. The extravagance of this church was made clear in the final cost: 56,030 scudi.

S. Carlo alla Quattro Fontane
This is a Trinitarian Church for Spanish monks who would go and rescue those taken hostage as well as preach the word of the Bible. This church was designed by Boromini, an introverted, shy, non-socialable artist who lived and died for his work. Boromini took no payment for his design and work on the church. He wanted to have total artistic freedom in his creation of the church. The church is made out of two triangles, which make a diamond, in which he placed two circles creating the outer curves of an ellipsis. He uses triangles and circles that play both geometrically as well as metaphorically: the triangle represents the Holy Trinity and the circle represents the eternity of God. The church is all white, with very calm colored marble and a small amount of guilding around the altarpieces.

Boromini has put 16 tall columns and arranged in odd rhythms that draw the eye directly to the main altarpiece. The dome of the church is amazing, filled with intricately arranged octagons, hexagons, and crosses that make the dome look much higher than it is.

The total cost of this more modest church was 11,678 scudi.

We were supposed to go to S. Maria della Vittoria, but we got there right as the doors closed. There is no way to get them to open the doors either, we knew we were doomed at the church bells chimed noon. But, c'est la vie, we'll visit it next week.

Ciao,
Ema

Oh happy day

2006-02-23T11:33:00.000-08:00

Five reasons that the 23rd of February was a happy day:

Numero uno-
It was only raining a little bit. Who invented umbrellas? Whoever it was, they're awesome.

Numero due-
We were finally at the colosseum at a time when they actually let you go inside and see the wonders it has to offer. We had learned all about the ancient stadium from Lisa some days before, and so we were all excited to see the inside and imagine how it must have looked in the days of gladiators and martyrs. You could see where all the people and animals had been kept or allowed to prepare for their turn in front of the crowd in rooms beneath the floor, and there were some of the original stone seats assembled for us to look at. You could almost picture the Colloseum filled with thousands of people in a frenzy of lust for good, bloody entertainment. Fun stuff.

Numero tre-
Um, that was all we did today. Hurrah for time to catch up on homework and exploration of Roma.

Numero quattro-
Lisa took us to the best gelato place in the entire world, San Crispino's. Unusual and amazing flavors there include (but are not limited to) Pear, Honey, Vanilla, and Ginger Cinnamon. I had two servings. Oops.

Numero cinque-
I turned 19 today. And of course everyone here is hard rock and took me out to eat yummy Indian food in Trastevere. Thanks guys.

Oh happy day.

-Julia

The Capitoline Museum and BBQ

2006-02-22T14:24:00.000-08:00

Wed - February 22, 2006

Today we set out at 10 for the Capitoline Museum. We walked through the Jewish Ghetto and up the stairs past the copy of the statue of Marcus Aurelius on his horse and into the Museum, which was right near Vittorio Emanuele and the Via del Imperiali

We then entered the museums (after many group photos in the courtyard with the massive body parts laying around, of course)

The museum in itself was huge. There was a ton of ancient statuary, including the original bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius, which, as Lisa said, is the only remaining original bronze statue from ancient Rome. All the others had been taken and melted down by the Catholic church. Why not that one? They had thought it was Constantine.

We also saw the remaining original wall of the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus (or the temple of Jupiter greatest and best as my old classics professor had translated for me), which the museum was built around.

We continued to wander through the museum, which turned from ancient specimen to early Christian art, then some Renaissance, then Baroque pieces, as well as many things I couldn't identify. There were paintings, tapestries, assortments of china, vases, the list goes on...

And we got to see a Caravaggio! (although the other had sadly been moved)

Then, to our great pleasure, we came upon a few rooms of busts, all lined up. We had a lot of fun with those. After looking at them and studying them intently like the good honors students we are, we all picked our favorite ones and posed next to them, often making funny faces. This kept us entertained for a while. When we moved on, we saw a few more statues, then headed down the giftshop to spend money.

We had a long break, where good food was eaten, work was done, and preparations were made for the group bbq!

We all met at 7:30 in Lisa's apartment bringing with us various tasty food items. Each of the apartments had been assigned food to bring. It was all delicious and the bbq was a success, as usual. We all ended the day feeling very satisfied, if not from the activities, then at least from the amazing food, which ranged from chicken and sausage, to whole pineapples and grilled vegetables, to a huge dessert platter consisting of pears and different varieties of chocolate and chocolate truffles, and a coconut cream torte surrounded by double chocolate chip cookies (that was made by me...very proud of that one). Yum!

Shayla

Palazzo Barberini and the Bees

2006-02-21T02:30:00.000-08:00

The rainy day did not look welcoming as we trekked to Italian language class. Two hours of the typical class passed and we all shuddered when it was announced we were going to begin learning the passato prossimo, or past tense.

Our afternoon took us to Palazzo Barberini and we gazed across the busy street to its original outer façade (seen to the right). Around to the entrance of the building we came, trying to rush past a huge group of French tourists. It didn’t work…they already had their tickets. But we had the last laugh! Just as Lisa was about to begin her discussion on the main salon ceiling painting, a man came up and invited us to enter a part of the palace not open to the public to view the ceiling on which Lisa did all her research. We stood alone in the empty rooms, once the private living quarters of the Barberini family, heads cocked to see the ceilings lit only by the light coming through the windows.

Back in the main salon we discussed Cartona’s masterpiece. The center of the ceiling painting was dominated by Divine Providence. Above Charity, Hope, Faith, Religion, and Rome assemble the Barberini family crest. The main source of information about the ceiling and its meaning comes from a pamphlet published by a household sweeper tired of visitors asking him for an explanation.

The Palazzo Barberini also houses the Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica. One of its more famous paintings, depicted below, is Raphael’s “La Fornarina,” believed to be a portrait of his mistress, the daughter of a baker.

After speed-walking back to the Rome Center, we made it home just in time to watch the screening of “Caterina va in Cittá,” after which we were provided with refreshments and the opportunity to ask the director, Paolo Virzi, questions.

- Kristin

Rainy Days and Mondays...

2006-02-20T16:30:00.000-08:00

Today we were looking forward to lunching atop the Palatine, but alas, not all things go as planned and we had our third rainy day here in Rome. So instead we got a lazy day to catch up on sleep and assignments—and laundry. We have become the apartment 312 Laundry Service since we have a washer in our bathroom—usually around the weekends, piles of laundry form a line in our entry way. After everyone else was done, we fit seven pairs of our jeans in the washer! Sette! We SHOULD have cleaned up the apartment a bit, as you can see how cluttered it is from this picture of Julia trying to write in her journal on our messy and dirty kitchen table/workspace. It's probably not the best idea to eat near our laptops...

After an afternoon catch-up meeting, many of us decided that it was high time we once again attempted to visit the cloister at Santi Quattro Coronati for the Silence and Belief assignment. From the pictures I think you can tell how beautiful and serene the cloister is, although I really can’t describe the incredible feelings poignantly enough here (I guess our assignment takes care of that!)
For me, the sound of the water pouring out of the small fountain took over all my senses and transported me to a peaceful place not of this world—I think we all would agree that it felt kind of like the outside world didn’t exist for those few moments spent inside this cloister. -Whitney

Naples Day Two

2006-02-17T13:38:00.000-08:00

Naples Day Two

With a whirlwind of new sights and smells we started our day off at the Duomo of San Gennaro. Before entering Jesse gave us a history of the Duomo. The Duomo is a 13th century Gothic style cathedral dedicated to Naples’ most important saint, San Gennero. The cathedral includes the 4th century Basilica St. Restituta, which now serves as a side chapel of the main cathedral.

Once inside Jesse took us on a tour of the cathedral. We looked at the interior paintings of the Duomo and paintings by Lan Franco. In this area I finally got the chance to hear mass in English—I was so excited!! Next we got to see the bones of Saint Gennaro which were nicely placed on display and each was labeled. Descending a stairway in the basilica we took an archeological tour of the remains of a Greek city. Here we got to see a Greek road worn by countless wagon wheels, remains of mosaics and a drainage system. Upon ascension, we made our last stop of the church at the baptistery. The baptistery is considered to be one of the most ancient in the west. It was neat; in the middle of the circular room the baptistery pool was in the center encompassed by a ceiling of extraordinary mosaics. The mosaics depicted scenes from the New Testament and had many early Christian symbols.

The next stop of the day was the 18th century Sansevero Chapel. This was one of the most unique chapels that we have visited thus far. The small chapel consisted of allegorical Baroque style statues. One of the statues that I liked which was not an allegory was Giuseppe Sammartino’s Veiled Christ. I just stared in awe at what an artist could do with marble; the veil over Christ looked so real. Another highlight were these two perfectly preserved skeletons, to me they were creepy but very interesting. They were preserved so well because of an innovative experiment and we could see the organs, arteries, and nervous system. I tried to get a photo of the corpses, but my sneaky tactics did not work for one of the workers caught me. Luckily, Lisa got one.

After a long break filled with shopping, we reconvened at 3:00 and walked to the Palazzo Reale, and Castle Nuovo. The Palazzo Reale built in the 1600s served as the palace of the Spanish Viceroys. The palace is the first thing that you see when you walk into this huge traffic-free piazza. At the far end of the piazza and opposite the palace is the church of San Francesco di Paola. The architectural building style of the church was taken from the Pantheon. To me, it resembled the Vatican square in front of St. Peters because of the curve style of the façade.

The last stop of the day was the Castle Nuovo. Here we analyzed and discussed the triumphal arch of Alphonso, which was a spark contrast to the castle.

After the discussion we were free for the weekend. Thank you Jesse for the amazing tour of Naples.

-Christina

Day One: Naples 16-02-2006

2006-02-16T10:29:00.000-08:00

Today we went to Naples, we got up and went to the train station at 7:30am this morning, not something that I highly recommend. You can tell we were all just a little sleepy, I caught this shot of Nicole and Schuyler snoozing on the way there that captured the mood of the group.

The train getting us there was late and by the time we arrived and got to our hotel (pictured below) all of the churches were closed. Our hotel was very nice, minus the neverending flight of stairs to get up there. This is the waiting area of our hotel.

This is us standing in front of a closed church that houses a Caravaggio painting. Jesse is giving us some background on Naples and what life is like here before we all headed off for an incredible pizza lunch.

Here we are walking to the Napoli Museo Capodimonte, which is one of the most amazing painting galleries I have ever seens. There are two floors of art, but one floor is so wide and amazing that it never seems to end and when it does you can hardly believe it. We went to see the Caravaggio "Flagellation of Christ," which is one of his later works. In this piece you can tell that Caravaggio has grown as a painter and while he still uses models he also uses some artistic liberty and does not paint strictly from the model. Caravaggio has become more aware of the human body and how to show it. We also saw one of Artemisia Gentileschi's earliest works Judith Beheading Holofernes, which is an absolutely breathtaking work. It was interesting to contrast her earlier more gruesome works with her later, softer paintings.

We had a group dinner at Bellini, an incredible restaurant only a few minutes away from our hotel. Many of us had our second pizza for the day, because pizza in Napoli is like no other pizza in the world. Pizza in Napoli is wonderful and so good you simply can't stop eating it (I am really glad I live in Rome where I can control myself). The seafood in Napoli is also very good, I highly recommend anyone who chooses to come and visit Italy to visit Napoli just to indulge in the food.

Ciao,
Ema

Galleria Doria Pamphilj

2006-02-15T14:21:00.000-08:00

Today we took a small jaunt through the city and ended up at the Galleria Doria Pamphilij. The Galleria Doria Pamphilj is a privately owned art collection housed in the palace of Pamphilj family. The palace is one of the largest in Rome and still serves as the home for Prince Don Jonathan Doria Pamphilij and his family.

Don’t let the exterior fool you, the beauty of the galleria lies within (shhhh, don’t tell anybody but I wasn’t suppose to take photos). We marveled at the velvet walls, gained multiple views of ourselves in the room of mirrors (first fig.), and gasped at the full mummifiedcorpse of the family saint. This saint was housed in the family chapel, which is still used today (second fig.).

The art collection contained works from the Medieval, Bryzantine, Reniassance, and Barqoue time periods and included works by Caravaggio, Velazquez, Gaspard Dughet, Raffello Stanzo, and Bernini. I personally liked Bernini’s bust of Pope Innocent X, a member of the Pamphilij family and Caravaggio’s painting Rest during the Flight into Egypt.

Being the home of many Baroque and Renaissance style paintings it was the perfect place for an exercise. Using the early German art historian Neinrich Wolfflins’ stylistic oppositions of the Baroque and Renaissance, we became art critics. In pairs we analyzed Guercino’s painting of Erminia finds the Wounded Tancredi (first fig.) and Ortolano’s Navity with Saint Francese, Mary Magdalen, and John the Baptist (second fig.), documenting distinct differences in technique, style, and form. After about ten minutes of analysis we reconvened as a group and discussed the differences. The Renaissance style is characterized by the classical appearance of symmetry, a balance of light and colors, and figures acting independently. The Baroque is distinguished by the usage of infinity of light and landscape, asymmetry, extreme emotional expressions, and overlapping of figures. These are just a few differences between the two periods, but from the difference that I have mentioned, can you tell which image is Baroque and which is Renaissance?

After our discussion we were free for the rest of the afternoon. This gave us the chance to wonder around the galleria, work on writing assignments, revamp some others, and prepare for our trip to Naples.

Will you be my valentine??

2006-02-14T14:41:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine’s Day!
What better way to spend Valentine’s Day than by learning the language of love at ItaliaIdea and then touring the romantic and dimly lit alleyways of the Catacomba di Priscilla? It was so much better than a boyfriend and flowers…

We tried to visit the catacombs last month but they were closed! So we were excited to see the open door when we arrived this time. Did you know that there once were 40,000 bodies buried in these catacombs? Before we ventured down into the darkness, Christina recapped some vital information from her presentation about early Christian imagery.

Some important symbols to remember:
chi rho--a P superimposed over an X, representing Christ
oran--usually a woman with her hands lifted towards the heavens, representing the human soul
peacock--represents immortality because the feathers were thought to last forever (like salvation)
fish--symbol for Christ or baptism

Our tour guide was so little and great: he reminded me a lot of the people at Disneyland who work at the Haunted Mansion. You know how they always speak softly and monotone and kind of stare blankly at you...but he sure knew his way around the windy and pitch black walkways and he kind of walked fast, not really worried about the group staying all together. All along the walls were small depressions that once were graves sealed with painted terracotta, but they were now empty. A couple graves were unopened!! It is hard to grasp that the frescoes we saw were painted in the 2nd and 3rd century CE, some were preserved so well. I truly felt like Indiana Jones--my life-long dream!!

We decided to have "Secret Valentines" for this very special day. We drew names and then brought the gifts when we went to dinner at the flat-fee and wonderful ristorante just around the corner.
Most of the gifts given were edible (the best kind). We left the restaurant a little heavier and a whole lot chocolate-y-er... -Whitney

Our own pilgrimage

2006-02-13T09:45:00.000-08:00

We began our day today with following the traditional pilgrimage walk from our own Campo de’ Fiori, along the Via Giulia, to St. Peter’s Basilica. As we walked along the back streets, lined with tall, view-blocking buildings, we could imagine how the millions of pilgrims that had traveled to the Vatican before us felt. They would walk, not sure what to expect, until the street suddenly opened up and they saw the San Angelo Bridge. It opens up to the Castle San Angelo, a round fortress that once served as a prison.

Turning to the left, we walked a little further until the streets opened up to the pathway to the piazza outside of St. Peter’s.

While we waited for our appointment to see the Scavi, Shayla told us about the history of the oval-shaped piazza in front of the building. (Picture coming as soon as I get my camera to work!) Designed by our favorite Bernini, it has the insigna of Alexander VII all over it - the popes were certainly not shy about putting their name on building projects they commissioned. He designed the 96 statues on top of the "motherly arms" extending from the building.

At 11:00, our appointment with the Scavi began! We were given a tour of the now-underground necropolis that St. Peter was buried in. This necropolis actually extends far beyond what they have excavated, but because there are now lots of buildings over it, they can't go any further for stability's sake. It's amazing that excavations didn't even begin until the 1940s!

We saw the family tombs of many different people, examining the different symbols they put on their sarcophagi and on the walls. Some of the plaques said how old the deceased was, right down to the hour!

Winding our way down the humid and narrow hallways, we finally came to the creme de la creme - the bones of St. Peter himself! Now, there is some speculation as to whether they're ACTUALLY his bones, and there is no way of ever really knowing for sure, but several popes have sanctioned the bones as his, and even just being so close to his venerated burial site and bones was amazing.

We continued to the basilica itself, which many people in our group had never seen. Even for those who had, it was an incredible site. There is so much gilding and decadence - no wonder the pilgrims felt honor in their religion after seeing it! (Again, pictures to come just as soon as I figure my camera out.) We spent some time discussing the mosaics on the walls (there are no paintings, just mosaics) and sculptures in the niches, and then left the basilica.

Jesse on the Tempietto & Palazzo Spada

2006-02-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

Today was a bit different and a nice treat as we had a guest lecture by Jesse Locker, a friend of Lisa’s, and a brilliant art history scholar. His specialty is Spanish patronage and political influence in Rome. We met at the Tempietto, a small but important church built by Bramante. It is a masterpiece of high Renaissance architecture commissioned by Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. With its small scale it looks as if it is delicately carved like a sculpture. The form is perfectly proportioned with classical columns surmounted by a dome. More importantly though, the Tempietto is built upon the site of Peter’s crucifixion. There is a whole in the foundation marking the spot of the cross. It is unbelievable to see such a site.
Next we went to the Palazzo Spada, a hidden gem of a museum. This is the first type of painting gallery we have seen, with smaller paintings covering all of the wall space. It gives the viewer a wholly different experience, as the eye actively darts from one to the other--very Baroque. These paintings were of much different subject matter than we have been accustomed to in the Renaissance period. The scenes deviate from the forever Heavenly. There are now battle scenes, still lifes, landscapes, fruits, and mythology. My favorite part of the museum was the courtyard with the columned optical illusion. The classical statue in the back is meant to look life-sized, just extremely far away, yet when someone stands next to it they are as tall as the arch.
We also heard the second half of Whitney’s presentation on Caravaggio at San Luigi dei Francesi, a French basilica. Inside, Caravaggio’s works are stunning, as crowds swarmed to them. Her presentation was very professional and thorough.

(pictures to come...if they ever upload properly...!)

-Danny

Caravaggio!

2006-02-09T08:50:00.000-08:00

We started our day with the one thing that we’ve all been SO looking forward to – our Italian class midterm! After that joyous occasion, we filed out of the ItaliaIdea school, down the few flights of stairs, and were able to breathe just a little bit easier.

After a bit of a break (which, for most of included lunch and/or a nap), we walked over to S. Luigi dei Francesi, a French church near the Pantheon, to hear the first part of Whitney’s presentation about Caravaggio. Unfortunately, the French apparently don’t have their churches open on Thursday, because the doors were quite firmly closed.

So, we trekked over to S. Maria del Popolo, in the Piazza del Popolo. Here, Whitney was finally able to give us half of her presentation, detailing some of Caravaggio’s later works that are located in the Cerasi Chapel. His two paintings, “Crucifixion of St. Peter” and “Conversion on the Way to Damascus,” (the former below on the top, and the latter in the middle), located on the side panels of the chapel, contrast sharply with Annibale Carracci's "Assumption of the Virgin Mary” (below, bottom) in the center.

The way that Caravaggio uses the contrast of light and dark was something revolutionary. He also depicted his subjects as incredibly real-looking people - viewing his work, I felt like I could see any of his subjects walking along the street. While some people disliked his work for this very reason (it was common belief that artists were supposed to take the natural world and make it beautiful, which Caravaggio steadfastly refused to do), it changed the way of painting from then on. He soon attracted a steady following of artists; however, in his typical manner, he would physically threaten anyone who dared to copy his method of painting. It wasn't until his death in 1610 that artists truly felt it was safe to paint in his manner!

- Mandie Tollefson

Wednesday February 8th: Bernini

2006-02-08T03:59:00.000-08:00

While the weather in Rome may have been mimicking a dreary day in Seattle, the clouds did not stop our group. We ventured on the 116, mini-bus, to the Museo de Villa Borghese. The Villa Borghese was built by Cardinal Scipione Borghese. Scipione was a patron of the arts and with the money he received from his uncle Pope Paul V he built the Villa Borghese to house his art collection. The museum was turned into a gallery in 1903. So, we hopped off the little bus and walked up the path to the villa, surrounded by trees and gardens.

Once we arrived at the Villa we were bombarded by Italian youth who also wanted to stare at Bernini’s works (we spent a lot of time avoiding the other groups). Now onto Bernini, which is a way cool topic. Bernini was a master of marble, we looked at his sculptures of Pluto and Persephone, David, and Apollo and Daphne. Each of these sculptures is meant to engage the viewer. One has to walk around the piece in order to understand everything that is happening in the sculpture. Bernini also uses different textures in his work,: the ground is unpolished and raugh, there is obviously hair covering the dog, the faces are smooth while the bodies are so highly polished that they shine. We wandered around the museum on our own for awhile until our stomachs began grumbling so loudly that we knew it was time for our group lunch!

Pizza and Pizza Re! In Italy, when you go out for pizza you normally finish the whole thing. These are not particularly small pizzas, but somehow they are so good that they just seem to vanish. This was the case with Pizza Re. The pizzas were laden with goodies, dripping with cheese and every bite was divine. So we hung around and laughed and had a great time and then it was on to our next adventure of the day: fountains!!!!

Julia Troutt had her presentation on “fountains and aqueducts, history of water as a political/propagandistic tool.” It was an absolutely stellar presentation that distracted our class from the fact that it was drizzling slightly outside. We spent the afternoon in the Piazza Navona: home to Bernini’s Four Rivers Fountain. Here are some lovely pictures of our group (I think we look prettier than the fountain) as well as some candid shots of Julia giving her presentation.

We wrapped up the day by talking about the talking statues of Rome. In order to have a voice there were these statues erected that people would post their thoughts on government and the election of the Pope, all under the cloak of night. During the day the posts would be taken down, but this gave people the opportunity to discuss/vehemently berate government.

So overall it was a jam-packed awesome day that not even the lack of sunshine could put a damper on.

Ciao,
Ema Land

Italiano e Evaluations e BBQ

2006-02-07T12:12:00.000-08:00

The eight of us in the Italian "crash course" met at ItaliaIdea at 9am. Our principal teacher Agnese returned today. All of us had begun to like our substitute, Daniella, so Agnese's return was a bit of an adjustment. In preparation for Thursday's midterm, we spent most of the class reviewing everything we've learned. This includes everything from present-tense conjugations, irregular verbs and essential phrases like "Dormo come un sasso" (I sleep like a rock).

Many of us met with Lisa to discuss progress. I can't speak for the entire group, but I for one enjoyed discussing comments on my work as opposed to simply reading comments on papers, as I have grown accustomed to in high school and college.

At 7pm we met at Lisa's apartment for a barbeque, American style. Lisa cooked hamburgers and sausages on the charcoal grill while everyone else contributed their own items. The sausages were spicy and juicy, just as I expected. My favorite was the potato salad. Yes it's true, my roommate and I made it but it was exquisite. We mixed together potatoes, hard boiled eggs, celery, green olives, dijon mustard, mayo, milk and an undisclosed vinegar.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was late afternoon July barbeque in Seattle.
--SD

Sopra Minerva

2006-02-02T12:25:00.000-08:00

Today we spent another productive morning in Italian language class with our substitute teacher, Daniella. The eight of us were broken up into four groups to play a verb conjugation game. The winners of the game, Whitney and Christina (team name il cornetto), got free cappuccini compliments of Daniella. After our coffee break we started another game that consisted of having a paper ball heaved at you. If you caught the ball you had to quickly conjugate a verb with a subject dictated by Daniella. Can anyone say hot potato?

Later in the afternoon we guzzled up another snack of doughnut holes as we walked to the Dominican church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. Here we learned that the church is built over the ruins of a temple to Minerva, the goddess of wisdom. Ironically, the wisdom of Galileo wasn’t tolerated as he was tried at this very location.

Don’t get fooled by the plain façade! The interior of the church is tall, ornate, and bathed in fresco. We spent time at the Carafa chapel talking about Filippino di Filippi’s frescos of Cardinal Carafa and St. Thomas Aquinas, a newly-named saint at the time.

Passing the altarpiece we stopped to witness the tombs of the Medici popes, Leo X and Clement VII, located in prime real estate land near the alter. Off to the left of the alter stands Michelangelo’s Risen Christ. We had a long discussion on why this piece has been so harshly criticized as Michelangelo’s worst work. Understanding the actual commission and intended location in a niche, we can better understand the position Michelangelo intended the sculpture to be seen, emphasizing the tools of the Passion.

- Kristin

Michelangelo's Moses & San Pietro in Vincoli

2006-01-31T18:43:00.000-08:00

Today we saw another one of Michelangelo’s masterpieces, Moses, which he considers his greatest work. In seeing the extreme grandeur and shear size of the Sistine Chapel, this may be hard to believe, but this sculpture is powerfully moving and emotionally compelling. Every feature of Moses is fully detailed and rife with symbolism. There are many interpretation of the exact moment of the scene where he descends from Mt. Sinai to behold the Israelites worshipping the golden calf.He is either rising from his seat in rage, ready to smash the Ten Commandments, or he has just tempered his anger and is returning to his seat, which means Michelangelo has taken the liberty of rewriting the Bible. In the analysis we read by Freud, he sees it this way. To analyze Moses’ demeanor, his hands and eyes are especially telling. His fingers gently stroke his long flowing beard of wisdom in deep contemplation, while his arms are fierce and tense with pulsating veins, as if his temper is boiling. Further evidence to prove Freud’s point is that the tablets are securely tucked under his arm, showing how his anger had not gotten the best of him. His monumental body is fearsome, but his eyes do not burn with rage. Instead his eyes and mouth show an intense hurt and pain of betrayal. In this, Freud’s analysis seems to hold greater weight, even though it implicates that Michelangelo did in fact seek to rewrite history. Reading into this then sheds light on what Michelangelo’s was attempting to communicate with this piece.
It becomes very important to note both the artists intentions, as well as to understand the patrons role. Here it can be inferred that Michelangelo was making a statement about his rocky relationship with the patron, Pope Julius II, in parallel to Moses’ anger and tempered contemplation.
The church, San Pietro in Vincoli, we saw this in was more unique than the others we visited. The central nave is much more disproportionately wider than the side aisles and the frescoes in the apse are not as heavenly as others. The church is prominent though, for it not only holds Michelangelo’s Moses, but also the vincoli, or chains of Peter from when he was jailed in Rome. These relics seem very powerful and are said to heal anyone who touches them. Once separated, with one pair in Constantinople and the other in Rome, they are also said to have miraculously linked together when united back in Rome.
We were also suppose to see the Coliseum, but it was closed. Oh well, it was still a fascinating day and great learning experience.

Danny Neuman